Wizards vs Aliens: Spanner In The Works

Chapter Three: All Systems Go!

Chapter three

Tom finally found the hole from which the tube had escaped, and stuffed it firmly into the base.

He shoved Lexi again.

"Wake up!"

The princess took in a giant gulp of air and coughed and choked a few times. Tom thumped her lightly on the back, even though he was really hitting her oxygen tank. He soon stopped this for fear of loosening the cord again.

"Whoa..." he breathed a sigh of relief, "You really had me scared then!"

Lexi opened the panel on her arm-piece. "I have an hour's worth left of oxygen. This should be sufficient to complete the mission." She stopped to ponder. "Something is not right...these spacesuits ought to be in impeccable condition. The technician staff would have noticed if they were defective!"

Tom and Lexi exchanged glances. It was a very short-lived mystery.

"The gremlins!" blamed Thomas.

"I will need to inspect your suit for any likewise faults."

The wizard bent over so she could see the back of his helmet's base. It was pretty nerve-wracking actually, having your arch enemy so close to the tubes that your very life depended on. All she had to do was silently slide one out to get rid of him...

"The tube connecting to the oxygen supply has been loosened. I will need to tighten it."

Lexi's gloved fingers started twisting the duct. For one awful moment Tom thought she might wrench it out, but then there was a slight 'click' and she moved her hand away, turning around to let him fix her own cable. Tom didn't want to look like an idiot who didn't know how to tighten a cord on an alien spacesuit so he made an attempt to screw it in, even though he didn't have a clue what he was doing...

Hissssssssssssss!

"No, no, no, no!" he cried in frustration.

He'd turned it the wrong way!

Tom frantically fiddled with the tube, trying to ignore the bewildered expression on Lexi's face. Finally, he heard the familiar 'click' and was able to relax.

"Phew!"

He tried to wipe his forehead, only to discover there was glass in the way.

Lexi caught sight of his actions and began chuckling.

"It wasn't that funny!" protested Tom, but he couldn't stop a smile forming.

It was just like it was when they were both held captive by Stephanie Gaunt. They were no longer deadly enemies. There was no hostility between them. You could almost say they were friends.

"I will never understand you," said the wizard.

"I now have 57 minutes' worth of air left," responded the princess. Tom wasn't quite sure, but it was almost as if she was joshing him. "There is no time to waste! We must get back to work immediately."

She led the way through the proceeding tunnel. Tom followed suite.

"Tom?" came a little voice.

It wasn't Lexi's. Was it coming through his intercom?

He was about to reply when the voice - which sounded a lot like Benny - told him not to.

"I need to tell you something - Varg's not going to let you go. I overheard him tell your Gran that as soon as you've caught the gremlins, he's going to extract your magic!"